The collective groan you just heard was from every other rider in the MotoGP class when they found out that Marc Marquez had signed a two-year contract extension with HRC.
Photography by Gold & Goose
Repsol Honda’s Marc Marquez will be trying to win his fifth MotoGP in a row this weekend in the French Grand Prix at Le Mans and he’ll do so armed with a new two-year contract extension from HRC.
The 21-year-old World Champion inked a two-year extension this week that will see him aboard a Honda for the 2015 and 2016 racing seasons. When his contract expires, Marquez will be all of 23 years old.
“I am very happy to announce my renewal with HRC,” Marquez said in a team release. “I had always dreamt about being part of the Repsol Honda team, and thanks to Honda the dream came true a year and a half ago. Everything happened very quickly last season, and I would have never imagined that I could achieve what we did. Becoming World Champion during my first season was another dream turned into reality. It is a great honor to be a part of the Honda family and I’m glad to remain with this special group of people for another two seasons.”
Shuhei Nakamoto, the executive vice president of HRC, is also pleased to keep the kid around for a few more years.
“We are very satisfied to have reached an agreement to keep Marc in the team for a further two seasons,” Nakamoto said. “Of course as Honda we wanted to keep Marc in our family and he also wanted to stay with us so… it was natural to renew the contract even if it is very early in the season. He is enjoying a fantastic start to 2014 and even though he is still learning, his ability to absorb information and adapt to the machine is remarkable.”
Marquez, who heads to Le Mans this weekend with a 28-point lead in the 2104 MotoGP World Championship, has 22 MotoGP starts and has finished on the podium in 20 of those GPs (10 wins, six seconds and four thirds). He has 13 pole positions, 13 fastest laps and, of course, one World Championship – earned in his rookie season a year ago. Marquez also earned titles in the Moto2 class (2012) and the 125ccc GP class (2010). Overall, he has won 36 Grands Prix.
